


Like Swimming in the Lightning

by beaglefanclub



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, accidental electricity hijinks, nikita is the only one who plays hockey, steven the friendly ghost
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-23
Updated: 2018-05-23
Packaged: 2019-05-13 01:34:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14739594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beaglefanclub/pseuds/beaglefanclub
Summary: to be honest, nikita isn't surprised to find out that he lives with a ghost.(or the one where nikita meets his soulmate, as narrated by steven stamkos' ghost)





	Like Swimming in the Lightning

**Author's Note:**

> title from wave(s) by lewis del mar
> 
> apologies for the lowercase

at first, steven thinks nikita is stupid. seriously; who sees doors opening on their own and hears strange noises at night and doesn't automatically think ghosts?

ghost steven only wanted to make friends. he kept nikita up late every night for the first few weeks, banging on the walls and knocking over pans. steven can't speak to humans unless they acknowledge his presence, so he had to make his presence known. he just didn't think it would take this long.

nikita finally figured out what was going on after a very fed up steven had knocked over the pepper shaker and spelled his own name in the dust.

nikita had stared at the piles of pepper on his counter as steven watched, completely exasperated. then, he'd sighed heavily, sneezed, and said "steven?"

relief had flooded over steven as he was _finally_ able to leave the uncomfortable state of being where he felt separated from his body like...well, like a ghost. now that nikita had called on him, steven was able to feel _somewhat_ like his usual undead self. plus, now he could read nikita's emotions.

after another few weeks, a begrudging nikita finally accepted that steven wasn't going anywhere—he was bound to this house, but that's another story—and consented to a friendship.

steven thinks he's very helpful. nikita thinks he's less than helpful.

okay, steven accidentally short-circuits the house once. okay, maybe it happens more than once.

nikita doesn't know how to fix a fuse box, and he doesn't want to. he's glaring at steven as he dials the number of the first electrician he found online.

(nikita definitely picked this guy because his name sounded russian. steven laughed at him, but only when he couldn't see.)

steven, having been around nikita long enough, knows his emotions inside and out.

so it hits him like a shockwave when nikita meets vlad.

steven is upstairs, minding his own business, feeling a bit miffed that nikita actually thought he had to _banish_ steven to the attic—he would have left nikita and the electrician alone _without_ the "insurance" (nikita's word. he was ecstatic when he found out he could banish steven to a different room).

steven feels a shift—annoyance. nikita was watching his own game highlights when the doorbell rang. then, steven hears the door open and is hit with such a powerful wave of emotion that he accidentally sinks through the floor.

he's...he's free. the banishment is broken, and now steven wants to meet whoever this person is that made nikita feel such a strong sense of...of _whatever_ that was.

steven floats down to the basement, following nikita's feelings. he descends behind his housemate and lays eyes on the electrician.

and yeah, he's pretty cute.

being closer to nikita allows steven to feel his emotions in greater intensity. currently, it's not _too_ much, but it's a whole darn lot.

this is nikita's moment, so steven is about to ascend back to his room of banishment. he'll ask nikita about this electrician guy—vladislav is his name, if steven remembers correctly—later.

at that moment, nikita says something about a glass of water. the electrician declines the offer politely, as he's busy fixing the fusebox. nikita turns around and all but runs out of the basement.

but first, he runs _through_ steven, and nikita knows what that feels like. and now he knows that steven is there.

steven has never felt the need to rush before; he's dead, he's got all the time in the world. he rushes now, hurtling upwards until he's back in his banishment room. nikita is throwing open the door a few seconds later. he says nothing, only stares at steven.

steven blinks back.

"talk later," nikita mumbles before shutting the door.

it's only hours later that they talk; long after vladislav "call me vladdy" is gone. the lights are fixed, but nikita sits at his table in near darkness.

steven floats next to him. reads his emotions. "y'know, i like him. he could really brighten this place up."

nikita doesn't say anything.

"get it? 'cause he's an electrician. he fixes the lights. now this place doesn't have to always be so dark."

nikita breaks a smile. "i live with a ghost. how much lighter can this place get?"


End file.
